Wood burners linked to 2,500 deaths a year in the UK

[hollydolly]

Wood-burning stoves and open fires are linked to 2,500 deaths a year in Britain – and banning them could save the NHS £54million a year, a study claimed today.

Non-essential domestic burning of wood and coal is one of the UK's biggest sources of toxic fine particle air pollution, according to the council-backed report.

Researchers warned heart and lung disease can be caused when fine particulate matter released in combustion 'penetrates deep into the lungs and bloodstream'.

They also linked air pollution from burning at home to an average of more than 3,700 cases of diabetes and nearly 1,500 cases of asthma in the country each year.

The report was commissioned by climate charity Global Action Plan and Hertfordshire County Council, and produced by UK environmental consultancy Ricardo.

It found 92 per cent of people burning wood in the UK already have another way to heat their home – but wood stove use has been rising over the past three years.

They are particularly popular in urban areas outside major cities where many people are installing them for lifestyle reasons – which the study claimed was 'inadvertently exposing themselves, their neighbours and their communities to toxic air'.

Larissa Lockwood, director of policy and campaigns at Global Action Plan, said: 'We all need to stay warm this winter, and we also need to think about the health impacts of our heating choices.

'An open fire or wood burning stove is the most polluting way to heat a home - air pollution from wood burning stoves is cutting lives short, putting people in hospital, and contributing to serious health conditions for people across the UK.

'It's an uncomfortable fact, but the health burden of wood burning on the British public is simply too big to ignore. Existing measures to curb wood burning emissions are not tackling the burning problem at hand.'

Wood burners linked to 2,500 deaths a year in the UK, study claims

 

[WhatInThe]

Needless especially if there are ways to vent the fumes outside that failed or were not used.

 

[JustDave]

Where I lived in Montana, many people heated homes entirely with wood. It was a lot of work to put away 8 cords for the winter, but the savings were immense. I'm too old to harvest wood now, and I live in a slightly warmer climate, so I heat with a heat pump, which is just a tad more expensive than harvesting my own wood. Wood is no longer worth the effort. There are now more efficient heat pumps that work down to zero degrees, and would be usable in Montana.

 

[Brookswood]

Nonsense!! Split wood not atoms!!!!

Right?

 

[GoodEnuff]

There are areas in many countries where there is no other way to heat a dwelling. In addition, it would not surprise me to know that governments want everybody to be dependent on The System. Let's make wood/coal heating illegal. Move everybody to a city where they can be monitored and controlled. That'll get them where we want them. And when the power grid goes down? Well, consider that population control.

If governments are so concerned about the health of their citizens, make it illegal to be obese.

 

[George1959]

There are areas in many countries where there is no other way to heat a dwelling. In addition, it would not surprise me to know that governments want everybody to be dependent on The System. Let's make wood/coal heating illegal. Move everybody to a city where they can be monitored and controlled. That'll get them where we want them. And when the power grid goes down? Well, consider that population control.

If governments are so concerned about the health of their citizens, make it illegal to be obese.

You hit the nail on the head.

 

[hollydolly]

There are areas in many countries where there is no other way to heat a dwelling. In addition, it would not surprise me to know that governments want everybody to be dependent on The System. Let's make wood/coal heating illegal. Move everybody to a city where they can be monitored and controlled. That'll get them where we want them. And when the power grid goes down? Well, consider that population control.

If governments are so concerned about the health of their citizens, make it illegal to be obese.

it's the same here. many , many villages have no connection to gas heating.. and use solid fuel.... or very expensive oil....

Electricity is super expensive here and most houses that are being newly built including all high rise apartments etc have only electric heating, no gas central heating at all any more.. so people turn to these little wood stoves to save money on their heating bills..

 

[Aunt Bea]

It feels a bit like overreach or nanny state thinking to me.

Over 600 thousand die each year in the UK.

It seems like battling other causes of death might yield higher results.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for educating the public about the health risks and ways to minimize the impact.

I just feel that something as basic as heating your home with wood should be a personal choice.

 

[Trade]

 

[hollydolly]

It feels a bit like overreach or nanny state thinking to me.

Over 600 thousand die each year in the UK.

It seems like battling other causes of death might yield higher results.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m all for educating the public about the health risks and ways to minimize the impact.

I just feel that something as basic as heating your home with wood should be a personal choice.

oh the uk now is the ultimate Nanny state... it's gone beyond a joke...

..as a small example of many much bigger ones... Just last week free refills of coke and pepsi have been banned in restaurants and bars... because the Nanny state has decided it's bad for us...

 

[Lilac]

We put a wood burner in when the house was 30 years ago because we are in a rural area. If the electric goes out, you need to have a back up heat source. In the spring after we stop using the stove, we have the pipe cleaned & inspected by the same family business for years. They ended up moving to our area & are now our neighbor. Hubby checks the gaskets on the stove & keeps up with those repairs.

We mainly use it to when the temps drops low to supplement the LP furnace. Even with the wood burner set on the low setting, it's capable of heating the entire house. It burns wood efficiently & I love it & wouldn't want to give it up for any reason.

 

[Capt Lightning]

We live in a small village with no mains gas supply. Most people use either oil or LPG for heating and electric for cooking . Oil is expensive, but usually cheaper than LPG and much cheaper than electricity.
In the lounge, we have a wood burning stove which is closed to the room, so is only open to add more logs. I would always want a proper log or coal burning stove in my house.

As for the survey, 'Global Action Plan' hardly sounds unbiased.

 

[Tom52]

oh the uk now is the ultimate Nanny state... it's gone beyond a joke...

..as a small example of many much bigger ones... Just last week free refills of coke and pepsi have been banned in restaurants and bars... because the Nanny state has decided it's bad for us...

My guess is the restaurants are just looking for a way to make more money. They won't give you a second Coke as a free refill but I bet they will sell you a second one.

If they were really concerned with your health they would not be selling it in the first place. You don't make much money if everyone asks only for a glass of water. Or, do they charge for water as well?

 

[BJintheUK]

My guess is the restaurants are just looking for a way to make more money. They won't give you a second Coke as a free refill but I bet they will sell you a second one.

If they were really concerned with your health they would not be selling it in the first place. You don't make much money if everyone asks only for a glass of water. Or, do they charge for water as well?

They do charge for water unless you specifically ask for tap water. In the UK tap water is safe to drink although I know that in other parts of the world that isn't the case.